Ihghouse electbic



C. T. ALLCUTT.

CIRCUIT INTERRUPTING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT- I. 19w.

1,323,238. I Patented Dec. 2,1919

Q l I WITNESSES: (h fIN; ENTOR I as 6/ .A/kz/f/ $14M.

v BY E" I ATI'ORNEY nnrrnn-srnrns rnrnnr onnrn CHESTER, T. ALLCUTT,VTILKTNSBURG, "PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR T0 VTESvT TNG'HUUSE ELECTRIC 6;MAIE'UTACT'URTNG CUIVEFANY, A COMORATTQN @E PENNsYLVANIA.

CIRCUTT-ITTTEPIEUPTIITG DEVICE.

2 23 specification of Letters Eatent. Patented Deco 2, i919,

Application filed-September l, 191?. erialjrto. 189,345.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that T, CHns'rnn T, Anncnrr, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of l/Vilkinsburg, in the county oi Allegheny and State ofPennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement inCircuit-Interrupting Devices, of Which the following is a specificationlMy invention relates to circuit-interrupting devices and particularly tomeans for automatically interrupting electric circuits underpredetermined conditions.

One object of my invention is to provide a quick-acting tripping devicefor a circuit interrupter that shall be energized partlytrom the circuitto "be protected and from an auxiliary circuit only When the currenttraversing the circuit to he protected exceeds a predetermined value.

Another object of my invention is to provide a device or the aboveindicated character that shall have a relatively op- I crating torque,he simple and inexpensive to construct and eflective in its operat Mycopjending application Seri 189,34 filed eptember l, 1917, means forquickly energizing. a from the circuit to be protected. it is frequentlynecessary to cause ping" device to exert a rela ively h longed torque tosure rapid and operation or the interrupt Tn vievv out the shove, Iprovide a eircu interrupter a trip coil thereior i transformer that isconnected betvr circuit to be protected and trip a spark gap that isconnected in coil circuit for operatively connec trip coil to thecircuit under predete conditions. A spark gap and a c n. are operativelyconnected hetv/ee coil and an auxiliary circuit. ll .rangernent. Whenthe first spark down, or discharges, sufficient elf relatively steepWave front is across the trip coil to break down tr spark gap and todischarge the con that is connected to the auxiliary c Thus, arelatively large operating ou insured and, conseciuently quick an tiveoperation of the trip coil is The single figure of the accompanyingdrawing is a diagrammatic view of an electric circuit embodying myinvention. An alternating-current electric or:

is provided With a circuit interrupter 2 hav- 111,9; a trip coil 3 thatis adapted to he actuated to trip the interrupter under predeterminedconditions in the circuit;

One terminal of the trip coil 3 is connect-,

' ed to one terminal or the secondary Winding 4t of a-transformer 5, theprimary Winding (S-of which is connected in series With the circuit 1.The other terminal of the trip coil 3 is connected to one terminal 7 ofa spark gap 8, the other terminal 9 of which is connected to the otherterminal of the secondary winding 4. A condenser 10 of relatively smallcapacitance is connected across the terminals of the Winding i and is adted is impressed across cause the spark 8 to break down. The secondaryWinding 4 of the transformer 5 is adapted to be normally open circuiteland to have potential that is suhstantiallyprol o the current traversingthe ri Q" 6. "y circuit 11 that is supplied t from a. source 12 of y sprovided with an electrolytic condenser or other condenser of relativelyl apacitance one terminal oi="\vhic i i one conductor of the circn minalof which is connectvely high resistance re" s other conductor 0r minal aspark b is terminal of the condor terminal 17 of the acted to oneterminal of the The other terminal orthe nected to the other terminalser 5 excessive overload travers Winoinp; i of the transformer" 5 tobreal down the 8 denser l to discharge. The condenser 10 iso uchcapacitance that the voltage across the 1;) soil 3 has a steep Wavefront and is of such value as to cause the spark gap 16 to be brokendown. The initial rush of current oin the circuit 1, if insufiicient tooperate the movable member 18 of the trip coil 3, will be supplementedby the discharge of the condenser 18. Thus, a relatively lare'eoperating current is supplied to trip coil 3 to insure its relativelyquick and efiective operation, under all conditions.

discharge When sufficient voltthe Winding d to L i direct and permit the0011- V I My invention is not limited to the specific deviceillustrated, as it may be variously 'modified without departing from thespirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the a pended claims. av

I c aim as my invention:

1. In an electric circuit, the combination with a trippingelectromagnet, a spark gap and means for opera-tively connecting theelectromagnet and the spark gap to the circuit, of an auxiliary sourceof; current, and means for causing the auxiliary current to traverse theelectromagnet only when a potential is impressed across theelectromagnet by reason of the discharge of the spark a g In an'electriccircuit, the combination with a trip coil, and a spark gap in seriestherewith adapted to discharge when a' predetermined current traversesthe circuit, of

- an auxiliary source of current, and means for causing current from theauxiliary source to traverse the .trip coil only when the spark gap isdischarged.

3. In an electric circuit, the combination with a trip coil and meansfor energizing the tIlp coil from the circuit under predeterminedconditions, of an auxiliary source of current, and means for causing theauxiliary current to traverse the trip coil only when a predeterminedpotential obtains across the trip coil by reason of its energizationfrom the circuit.

4. In an electric circuit, the combination with a trip coil and meansconnected to the circuit for impressing a high-frequency voltage uponthe trip coll when an overload obv tains thereon, of an auxiliary sourceof current, and means for causing the auxiliary current to traverse thetrip coil under predetermined conditions in the trip coil.

5*. In an electric circuit, the combination with a circuit interrupter,a trip coil therefor, a spark gap in circuitwith the trip coil and meansfor breaking down the spark gap when the current traversing the circuitexceeds a redetermined value, of an auxiliary source of current, and aspark gap opera connecting the trip coil to the circuit underpredetermined conditions, of a direct-current circuit, and means foroperatively connecting the trip coil to the direct-current circuit whenthe alternating-current voltage across the trip coil exceeds apredetermined 7 value.

8. In an alternating-current circuit, the

combination with a circuit interrupter, a

trip coil therefor and means for causing an oscillating current totraverse the trip coil from the circuit under predetermined conditions,of a direct-current circuit, and a spark gap connected between the tripcoil andthe direct-current circuit and adapted to break down when thepotential across the trip coil exceeds a predetermined value.

9. In an alternating-current circuit, the combination with a circuitinterrupter, a trip coil thereforv and means for causingan oscillatingcurrent to traverse the trip coil from the circuit under predeterminedconditions, of a direct-current circuit, a condenser connected acrossthe direct-current circuit, and a spark ga for so connecting thedirectcurrent circuit to the trip coil that an efl'ective operatingcurrent will traverse the trip coil under predetermined conditions.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name this 21st day ofAugust,

CHESTER T. ALLCUTT.

